USDA requests public input on the National Water Quality Initiative

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it is asking for public input on the National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI).

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) seeks feedback on how best to target program benefits, quantify impact, and improve program delivery and outreach in the future.

The opportunity for input is part of a 30-day public comment period. NRCS said that public comments should be submitted through the Federal Register notice by April 7, 2023. Questions should be sent to [email protected].

“In watersheds across the country, we have seen the benefits of targeting resources, working one-on-one with farmers and ranchers to voluntarily implement conservation practices that improve water quality and often have climate co-benefits” said NRCS Chief Terry Cosby. “We’re proud of what the National Water Quality Initiative has accomplished, and we look forward to continuing to improve our efforts to ensure they provide the greatest impact for producers, communities and our nation’s waterways.”

Information gathered through the Federal Register notice will help inform NRCS efforts to identify and prioritize improvements to this initiative starting in fiscal year 2024.

More about NWQI

NWQI was launched in 2012, and is a partnership among NRCS, state water quality agencies and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to identify and address impaired water bodies through voluntary conservation. Through NWQI, NRCS provides targeted funding for financial and technical assistance to help farmers apply conservation practices to protect water resources.

NRCS said that, over the past ten years through NWQI, it helped farmers and ranchers:

• Reduce sediment loss by more than 1.1 million tons.
• Reduce phosphorus loss by more than 3.1 million pounds.
• Reduce nitrogen loss by more than 13.5 million pounds.